3 dozen treated at Stage AE hip-hop concert

PITTSBURGH - Nearly three dozen young concert-goers were treated during a hip-hop concert Friday at Stage AE on the North Shore, Pittsburgh paramedics said.

Sixteen people were taken to hospitals for treatment of "dehydration and other heat-releated issues," said Paul Sabol, a paramedic district chief. Approximately 16 others became ill at the concert by hip-hop superstar Mac Miller and were treated at the scene, Sabol said.

There were between 2,000 and 3,000 fans at the outdoor venue when the concert began at 6:30 p.m., said Marshall Jarrett, one of three city paramedics who worked at the gathering.

The temperature at Pittsburgh International Airport at 9 p.m. was 71 degrees. It was 70 at 11, said Rich Kane, a meteorologist for the National Weather Service.

"The dew point was 61. Any time the dew point gets over 60, you start to feel uncomfortable, do some sweating," Kane said.

"It doesn't take much to get overheated when you have a whole lot of people huddled together and dancing," Sabol agreed.

He said some of the young people admitted smoking marijuana and consuming alcohol.

Two were taken to Children's Hospital. The others went to UPMC Mercy and Allegheny General hospitals, Sabol said. Most were young women between the ages of 16 and 20, he said. Several walked to paramedic units with intravenous tubes in their arms.

At one point, city paramedics called for mutual aid from Ross/West View Emergency Medical Services, Sabol said.

Simon Taxel, another city paramedic who worked at the concert, said the Stage AE staff was well-prepared for the concert and heat-related problems but needed help as the number of people becoming ill peaked around 10 p.m.

This article was written by Channel 11's news exchange partners at TribLIVE.